As The Rain Falls
by Ino-Chan24
Summary: UD:Sorry guys, but I have to take a break for now. I have a TON going on at the moment and major writer's block. But don't worry! I won't stop writing the story. I'll finish it for you! Be sure to fav so you will know when I update!
1. Chapter 1: All Is Lost

**Hello everyone!!! First fan fic. I've been wanting to write one for the longest time, but never had I come up with a decent idea. **

**Please be gentle in your reviews, and please bear with me as I work on my fan-fic skillz!!! =]**

"Text text." Is talking.

_'Text text.' _Is thoughts.

**_Text text _** Is flash backs.

**Chapter 1: All Is Lost**

The outbreak had begun just a month ago. No one knew exactly what it was. It had the symptoms of hypothermia, and spread faster than the flu. All who were infected ended up in the hospital for a week or so, until they presumably 'died'. Apparently, that wasn't exactly the case. After seeming dead for a few hours, a rapid change would take place, and then you have this… this killer machine that craves human flesh, mainly the heart. Soon it was uncovered that this had been the work of Orochimaru. All who tried to stand against it had been taken down and devoured easily. Some were immune, however. Luckily it was most of the ninjas, as they had stronger bodies and stronger immune systems. Unfortunately, when the outbreak occurred, the vast majority of the village's ninjas were out on missions, leaving the village weakened, its villagers unprotected. Most of the ninjas that remained had been wiped out. So far, only Team 10 survived, battling for their lives, no support on its way.

"Ch-Chouji!" Ino's long scream pierced the icy air, clouds darkening their surroundings. She watched in horror as Chouji's life-less body fell to the ground, a hole through his chest. One of the strange beasts jumped on top of him, digging its fingers into the hole and ripping his heart out before devouring it. She covered her mouth to hold back the bile that rose in her throat, her body threatening to be sick. She ran over to him, slashing her kunai into its back. About to strike again, she paused as she heard Shikamaru call out. She whipped around to see him struggling with two of the strange creatures. "Hold on Shikamaru! I'm co-"

Suddenly her body was thrown back, hitting a tree and snapping the thick trunk like a mere twig. She tumbled to the ground in a crumpled heap, her back throbbing. She looked up as it came again, moving like the demons her father used to tell her stories about… Her father… She shook her head sharply, gripping the kunai in her hand as she jumped up, blocking it's attacks, throwing some of her own, barely able to keep up.

The team had been fighting for over a day now, no rest or break what-so-ever. Their chakra levels were running dangerously low for a battle, their muscles screaming in protest, senses dulling. Chouji had managed to destroy most of them with his Human Boulder attack, but now… now that he's gone… it left only two of them to fight them off, no longer Formation InoShikaCho. She gasped as it slashed at her chest, four great gashes now seeping blood. She refocused herself. _'No time to think of the past… No matter how recent…' _She chastised herself, blocking with one kunai as she raised the other, stabbing into its neck and tearing it through, finally separating the head.

She whirled around again to find Shikamaru on the ground, pulling himself up slowly. "Shikamaru!" She cried, darting in front of him as the male tried to attack again. Its hand tore across her cheek, leaving another four gashes. She gasped in pain, returning a powerful punch to his face, sending him flying backwards. She looked over her shoulder. "You okay?" She asked as he stood. "I'm... okay, Ino. You look worse than me!" He told her, turning away from her sharply and began fighting with the other one.

She returned to the one that she had punched, watching it slowly stand up. She heard Shikamaru behind her begin his shadow jutsu, hearing him grunt with success. Once the male was up, she could see the anger in his features. The white eyes seemed to be locked onto Ino, the pure white eyes that held nothing, like as if they had rolled up into the head. His body hardly showed any injuries at all, its muscles rippling as it started towards her, slightly crouched forward. The grey, clammy-looking skin was flawless.

Ino, on the other hand, wasn't doing so great. Injuries covered her from head to toe, blood staining her once purple top. She raised her arms, a kunai in each hand, preparing for the strike. A choked scream brought her out of her battle stance, her eyes wide as she turned towards the direction of the sound. "Sh-shika..." Ino croaked, watching her last companion fall to the ground, a demon shuriken through his heart. The female that he fought had fallen too, so it was somewhat successful... however, it had still backfired… horribly. Out of haste, he must have began the attack, not realizing that he was too close to a tree, making him unable to lean back and dodge his own attack.

Clutching her mouth, she tried to hold back the second round of bile that rose, threatening to spill over. She spat it out, coughing. Then Ino turned back to her approaching enemy, but only too late. Before she could resume battle stance, it had its hand locked around her throat, throwing her against a tree. She clutched at her throat, unable to breathe as it held her there; raising it's other hand, thrusting it into her heart.


	2. Chapter 2: Falling Faster

Woot! Chapter 2. I've had a lot of this written down in my notebook, but retyping it and editing it is a pain. XD But yes. Here's chapter two. It's almost twice the size of the first chapter so that's good. XD

Please be gentle in your reviews!!!

Thanks to all who read!

**Chapter 2: Falling Faster**

Pain ripped through her chest, so unbearable that she wanted to scream, but she couldn't. She had no air. She couldn't move. Luckily she had been able to kick up her leg, pulling herself to the side just before it struck, its hand going straight through her shoulder to the other side. Her blood ran freely down her chest and the tree bark, pooling beneath her. She managed to pull a kunai from her pouch, shoving it into the arm that held her, ripping it through the muscles. He pulled his arm out of her chest roughly, letting her fall to the ground in a heap as it clutched its arm.

She took the few seconds to pull in as much air as she could, filling her deprived lungs. Before she could look up, she was suddenly rolling across the ground, a sharp pain in her side. She slowly pulled herself up, glaring at it. "Kick me when I'm down, cheap sh-shots now, eh?" She asked, slowly pulling herself up, and then darting at him. She cried out as they collided, both managing to land hits, each very different from the opposing.

Ino's lungs heaved, her attacks growing slower. He landed a hard hit to her temple, making her world spin as she struggled to stay balanced, but ending up falling to her knees. Staring up at him, she grimaced, her body aching. His eyes… his face… his smile… it was like… he was enjoying this… enjoying her pain, making her suffer like this. She pulled herself up, stumbling slightly as she resumed battle stance. "So… Take away everything and everyone that I love. That's how you things play?" She whispered, charging at it and parrying with it for a minute before jumping back. "How _dare _you take away everything that I cherished? Everyone that I love is gone!" Talking louder now, she dashed towards him as he did towards her. "I'LL RIP YOU APART!" She screamed, feeling the adrenaline of anger pump through her veins, giving her the strength to carry on, though her shoulder had soaked her shirt, blood running down her stomach to her skirt.

At first, he dodged quite easily, as if waiting for her to fall from blood loss. Then one strike diagonally across its chest. "That was for my Chouji!" She growled. Then another of the opposite diagonal. "That was for my Shikamaru!" She raised both kunais. "Time to pay up." She said softly, yet acid dripped from each word. Ino had dug each kunai into his neck, wrenching them apart until the head slowly detached, falling to the ground, the body following after.

Ino stood almost frozen, her arms slowly lowering, the kunais falling to the ground. Her breath was slow, then quick, growing labored. She stumbled a bit, struggling to stand as her head spun. She widened her stance, blinking several times. "I will not… go down until my… my duties as a ninja… as Yamanaka Ino, are completed…" She muttered, her voice growing slightly louder as she spoke. Turning first to Chouji, her hand flew to her mouth as she walked unsteadily towards him. His eyes were open, his face contorted in pain. Ino leaned down and closed his eyes with her shaking hand. She then untied his headband, retying it loosely around her neck. Then she took his weapon pouch, tucking it under her arm.

She went to Shikamaru, inhaling sharply as he laid there, his own weapon through his heart. She kneeled by him and placed one hand on his chest, using the other to pull out the weapon, tossing it weakly aside. She struggled with his headband. _'He must have tied it really good to keep from having to untie it and retie it… That's my Shika.'_ She thought solemnly, tying his around her neck as well, taking his weapon pouch too.

Slowly pushing herself up, Ino wiped the tears that had formed, sniffling as she headed towards Konoha. Their battle had luckily been close by, for that she was grateful; she didn't know if she could make it back if it was somewhere else. Upon entering the empty city, Ino's eyes slowly checked and double checked the area, making sure that it was indeed empty. Arriving at the supply shop, she grasped the notch, pulling it open and walking inside.

A few minutes later she walked back out, a large bag on her back, half way filled, and a shovel in her hand. Grunting, she made her way to her house, pushing the door open with her foot, keeping her eyes down as she went to the kitchen. She pulled out all of their dried foods, along with all the rice, dropping them in her bag, following them with a pot, chopsticks, a spoon, and some bowls. She stared up at the sugar canister for a moment, before snatching it down, tossing it into the bag too. Her mother's recipe with rice included it.

The bag had grown heavier as she made her way to her room, pulling out all of her ninja clothes and tossing them in, as well as her large emergency kit and a rag. She pulled a blanket from her bed and tossed that in too, a first for her. Usually on missions, she would only bring the bare essentials, using Shikamaru and Chouji to keep warm. She smiled sadly at the memory, of how she used to sleep between them, clutching them to her in her sleep. She sniffed and wiped more tears away, heading out the door and out of Konoha.

As she passed into the clearing, she hit the ground, falling face-first into the dirt. She didn't move for a few minutes, forcing deep, painful breaths. "D-damn it…" She muttered, failing a few times as she tried to get up. Finally she had been able to hold herself up with the shovel, dragging her bag and herself to the large tree in the center of the clearing. She dropped her bag and leaned against the tree, glaring in the direction of Konoha. Those monsters gave off a strange aura, changing the air around them, sucking their chakra from them, stealing their life. It was the strongest in the city.

She pushed herself from the tree, her hand hovering over her shoulder as she tried to stop the bleeding for the time being. Her chakra had held it shut as she thrust the shovel into the ground, digging the graves for her comrades. Each scoop was agonizing, but the thoughts of her Shika and Cho pushed her on. An hour later, she had managed to dig two holes big enough for the both of them, grateful that the dirt had been soft.

She dropped the shovel and walked slowly to Chouji, kneeling down and hooking each hand under his arms and began to drag him; she had tried lifting him at first, which she easily could have done, but found herself too weak. Lowering him carefully, Ino grimaced as her torn muscles protested. She managed to get the majority of him laid down before she lost her balance, falling into the hole with him, landing on her back. She groaned, turning around and pulling herself out. She was able to pick Shikamaru up and lay him successfully into his own grave. She jumped into the hole with him, kneeling by his side and caressing his cheek. "G-good bye, my Shika-kun, may you rest well." She told him softly, kissing his forehead and getting out, sliding into Chouji's grave, patting his stomach. "Good bye to you too, my Chouji-kun, may you eat well where you're going." She kissed his forehead as well, and then jumped out, slowly filling the holes.

Tears stung her torn up face, falling to the ground. Thunder boomed in the distance, threatening rain as Ino patted the dirt down with her callused hands. Taking two kunai, one in her hand, the other in her mouth, she went to the tree they were buried under and untied Chouji's headband from her neck, stabbing the kunai through the cloth, pinning it to the tree above him, doing the same with Shikamaru's. She swallowed hard, wiping her tears away as she pulled two roses out of her bag, placing them on the graves; she had gotten them from the vase at her house before leaving.

Her hand hovered at her shoulder again, closing off the hole to stop the bleeding that had started up again. She was glad that she had learned some healing techniques; it was probably the only thing keeping her alive. She went around gathering all the weapons strewn about, tearing them out of the ground and trees before piling them next to her bag. She let her eyes roam around the clearing, counting the bodies.

'_One, two, three, four…'_ She started walking around, getting a better view as she began kicking some heads away.

'_Eight, nine, ten, eleven…'_ She walked slowly, trying not to pay attention as she kicked all of the heads into the clearing on the other side, still counting.

'_Nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two…_' She picked up some wood slowly, her eyes still darting around the clearing as she dropped it where the heads were.

'_Thirty-three, thirty-four, thirty-five, thirty-six.'_ She narrowed her eyes; that can't be right. She double counted, then triple counted as she dragged the bodies to the pile.

She started the fire with her chakra, stumbling back as it burst into flames. "Were there really that many..?" Still unbelieving, she walked back to the tree, pulling out a set of clothing and a rag, heading towards Konoha River. As she neared the river, she felt her body trembling. Her chakra was extremely low, making it increasingly difficult to stay conscious.

Collapsing by the river, she gritted her teeth as she pulled what was left of her clothes off, tossing them to the side, slowly lowering herself into the cool water. It almost felt good, beside the fact that it had her shivering, biting her lip as she cleaned the blood from her body, the rag scraping against the raw flesh. Finally, her agonized bath was over with, watching as blood-soaked water washed down-stream. She sighed; had she really lost that much blood? She pulled herself out, patting herself dry before slowly pulling on a new set of clothes, barely managing only two buttons on her top. She didn't care, anyways. She ventured back towards her comrades' graves, feeling her head grow light. She arrived, collapsing between the graves. "Shika… Cho… 'Night…" She mumbled softly, her eyes rolling up into her head as her world went black.


	3. Chapter 3: Going Insane?

=3 Thanks for the reviews, Inoblueyes2 and L0stL0ve. (I do hope I spelled those right?)

Here's the next chapter for you guys. Maybe chapter two was kinda dragging a little bit... I dunno. But here's Chapter three.

L0stL0ve: I hope it goes somewhere good... XD Glad you like it.

Inoblueyes2: Thanks for reading! I'll try to keep up the goodness! If that makes sense... XD

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**Chapter 3: Going Insane?**

Of course his body remained untouched after each battle, thanks to the sand in his gourd. Naturally, his chakra was beginning to diminish after each kill. Sure, his sand made it incredibly easy to defeat the mindless beings; however, they did not bleed, so his sand had not been reimbursed for its troubles. Nonetheless, it continued to protect him. After a few days of traveling, they had shown up, and he had taken them down easily. His spies were correct about the strange beings. He jumped faster through the trees, his red hair blowing back in the wind, showing the mark on his forehead. Now, Gaara wondered what exactly had happened to Konoha.

He had sent messages through all forms possible, getting no reply at all. He found this increasingly odd, as Konoha had always been good at giving a quick response. His brow creased as he neared the gates; at this point, he normally would have heard the sounds of the people bustling about. Now, he heard nothing. Complete silence. He landed just before the gates, his head raising slowly, eyes darting around as they tried to find any sort of life. Anything that moved, but all was still as death. "Something is wrong… Where is everyone?"

He stepped into the city, walking into the first house, as its door was open. He inhaled sharply at what he saw. Blood, blood everywhere, spattered on the walls, bloody hand prints slapped the ground. He pulled back quickly, turning on his heel and darting out. He had to grip the door frame suddenly, feeling his head begin to spin. He breathed slowly, eyes closed. It felt almost as if… as if his chakra was being pulled out of his body. His eyes widened as he ran out of the city. He began walking along the walls, towards Konoha River. He had always liked the sound of it, since he did not have many where he resided.

Reaching the river, he stood by it, rubbing his temples. Rain began to slowly fall, making him jump as one hit his nose, opening his eyes and staring into the river. "What happened here? Had those things attacked? Why was everyone gone? Where are all the ninjas protecting the city?" He asked himself, blinking at his reflection. Was his vision going awry? He stared at the red water, knitting his brow as he bent down, touching his fingers to the water. He froze, glaring at the blood on his hand.

'_Those things don't bleed… so this means that someone is nearby… I hope I'm not too late!'_ He dashed upriver, stopping after only a few seconds of running to see something on the ground. He kneeled by it, picking up something that appeared to be a shirt. Or, what was left of it, that is. It looked like someone had gone at it with a kunai, or a litter of teething puppies had gotten to it, except it was completely soaked in blood. He dropped it upon seeing some foot prints, jumping up and following them, slower than he would have wanted. They went from side to side, uneven, like who ever they belonged to had no coordination.

He finally reached a clearing, stopping in the trees and peering out. Blood was everywhere, yet there were no sign of bodies. His eye caught something light, turning towards it sharply. He gasped. _'A girl? Is she alive?_' He wondered, rushing to her, stopping just before her. He stared at the sight. The girl was laying between two graves, a rose on each one, the headbands pinned to the tree. Wide eyes turned to her, Gaara dropped down, picking her up and bringing her to the other side of the graves, by the huge duffle bag. He laid her on her back, pushing her wet hair from her face. This girl… She was familiar to him in every way, since the Chuunin exams, where they first met. Her name though… what was it?

Laying her gently on his lap, he went through the bag she had, looking for anything to give him a clue. He pulled out a bag, tossing it aside before grabbing a box that turned out to be an advanced first-aid kit. It had a name written elegantly in the bottom left corner: 'Yamanaka Ino'. He looked back to her, studying her more carefully. She didn't look so great, quite pale, actually. Though passed out, her face was contorted in agony. Three seconds had passed before Gaara yanked open the kit, beginning to wrap her wounds.

Once finished, he gently laid her down on her bag as he set up the tent. It would be too dangerous to try to travel with her now. Once it was set up, he carefully moved her inside, covering her with the blanket she had brought. He began looking around the area, trying to piece together what had happened. There was a pile of weapons next to the tree, more than enough for three ninjas. What had they fought? A flicker of red on the other side of the trees caught his attention. He walked to it, getting his answer. The bodies were stacked, thrown messily into a large pile, the fire licking at the flesh, burning away slowly.

Remains of heads were scattered throughout, the eyes of each one wide, threatening to burst, some had already. All was enough to make one sick. He turned and returned to Ino, peeking inside the tent as rain began to fall. "She had managed to do all of that, even while critically injured like this… How?" He wondered aloud, shutting the door and sitting against the tree, leaning back, closing his eyes. It was getting late, anyways.

* * * * * * * *

Ino hadn't woken up. It had been 3 days, so someone could have easily assumed she was dead. But every day Gaara would go into the tent, checking her pulse three times a day, changing her bandages once a day, growing anxious. The rain hadn't let up, but it was light enough that it wasn't a problem. Gaara had prepared everything for departure, leaving the tent and blanket for Ino. He had come in to check on her for the last time that day, freezing in place as he saw that she now laid limply, her face blank, lips slightly parted. She was usually very tense, her eyebrows pushed together. He panicked, dropping by her side, pressing his ear to her chest. He waited, closing his eyes in concentration. _'No… she couldn't be dead. Not yet…'_ He told himself, waiting in silence.

Finally, her faint heart beat had been detected by his ear, making him smile, sighing in relief. He took a deep breath, calming his racing heart. Only to fail miserably as he did a double take at Ino, his lips pursing. Only two buttons were done up on her top. The _wrong_ two buttons. He narrowed his eyes. How in hell did he manage to miss that? He sighed at the task before him. Doing something like this was so unbecoming, so ungentlemanly. Nonetheless, it needed to be done, for it was getting colder.

He sighed, carefully reaching down, fumbling with the tight buttons, and finally getting them undone when he felt something hit his face sharply. "Shikamaru you pervert…" She mumbled softly. He blinked. Had she just slapped him? He looked at her. _'But she's still sleeping…'_ His face went red. _'And her shirt fell open when she slapped me…'_ He gulped, looking away. He cussed under his breath, carefully finding one edge of her shirt, then the other, pulling them together slowly before buttoning them back up.

He scooted away quickly as soon as he finished, dragging his hand down the front of his face. "My apologies, Yamanaka-San." He said softly, bowing before sitting straight up, watching her sleep absent-mindedly. She had kicked the blanket off in her sleep, and his eyes began to roam her maimed body. He frowned as he looked at all of her wounds, all of her bruises. His eyes lingered over her neck, narrowing as they traced the shape of a hand in the bruise. He gritted his teeth, feeling angry for some reason. He took a deep breath and calmed himself.

"You're amazing, you know that?" He told her, pulling a bag of jerky out of the bag, chewing it slowly.

"You were almost killed, yet you managed to have just enough strength to take care of your fallen comrades." He narrowed his eyes in thought.

"I mean, if you really think about it, it's almost physically impossible." He noted, nodding as he tore another piece of jerky.

"Unless something miraculous happens in the mind, then your chances of even being able to survive this entire thing are pretty much zero." He told her, sighing.

"How you managed to do it is beyond me." He admitted, laying back, his hands behind his head.

"When you did all of that after the battle, you must have been in excruciating pain, judging from the wounds that you carried from when I first found you. What strength…" Glancing over at her, he watched her turn over to her side, facing him, her hands twitching slightly.

"You lost a lot of blood, too. And those bruises look absolutely agonizing." Sighing, he closed his eyes.

"The terrible losses of your comrades will haunt you forever, I'm sure. It must be painful… Losing everything and everyone that you love…" He broke off, his mind deep in thought. Suddenly, he chuckled, his eyes opening for a moment, before closing again. "I'm talking to a sleeping girl. How strange. I must be going insane..."

* * * * * * * *

The morning had come sooner than expected, making Gaara open his eyes, blinking them slowly. When did he fall asleep? He didn't remember. He sighed as he checked Ino's pulse, smiling as he heard it more strongly now. He crawled out of the tent, standing up and peeking back in. "Okay Ino, I'm going back to the village for more food. I'll be back soon, so stay put." He said softly, not seeming to care that she couldn't hear him. He started to stand, then stopped, taking one last look at her, a faint smile on his face. Finally he turned away, shutting the tent and breaking out into a run towards the village.


	4. Chapter 4: The Debate

Wooo!! Here's chapter 4! Hope you like it!!!

I think it's a tad on the boring side... But I don't know. You tell me.

I hope it's okay so far... . =]

I think there's a little OOC-ness. Haha. Oh well.

Thank you, Hanari-chan, for the fav!!

(I don't own anything, by the way!!)

Thanks to everyone who reads!!!! Please continue to read and review!!

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**Chapter 4: The Debate**

A sharp, painful shiver brought her out of her sleep, yet she kept her eyes closed. _'My body… I… I can barely move. My muscles are so stiff…'_ She thought, groaning as she slowly began pushing herself up to a sitting position, stretching before opening her eyes. And then she froze, her heart thudding in her chest. "Wh-where am I..?" She wondered, looking around. She was inside the tent that she took, her blanket in her lap, her bag behind her. She looked down to see that she was bandaged up. "Eh?" She poked it with her finger. _'I couldn't have done this… It's too neat…_' She thought sheepishly.

She looked up to the door of the tent, slowly pulling herself towards it, grunting with effort as she stood up outside. "Ooooow…" She moaned, stretching carefully. "What happened while I was sleeping?" She wondered aloud. She tensed. Someone had been here. They couldn't have been the enemy… She'd be dead by now, obviously. But who was it…? She sighed, looking around, nervously tugging her fingers through her long locks. It seemed to be close to the evening, the sun just above the mountains. She froze when she heard a sound on the other side of the trees, her breath caught in her throat. She leaned over and picked up a kunai from her pile, holding it out in defense.

A pair of opaque sapphire eyes appeared, locking onto hers and narrowing. She gulped, walking a few steps forward, struggling to hold herself steady. The figure emerged from the trees, taking a few steps towards her. She stumbled back, inhaling sharply as pain hit her shoulder. Her heart seemed to stop as he put down what he was carrying, raising his hands. She assumed the battle position, barely managing to stay standing upright. She watched as he put his hands up flat, palms facing her. She narrowed her eyes. Was this a technique or something else? She startled slightly as he started waving them slightly side to side.

"Ino, calm yourself." Her head jerked up. _'Wait, he knows my name..?'_ He took a step closer to her, and she took a half step back.

"I'm not here to do you harm… Relax. Do you remember me?" Ino's dull eyes slowly examined the tall man before her. She couldn't see him very well, but she could tell that he was definitely not one of the demons, because his clothes were still intact. He was almost well-dressed in a dark reddish-auburn trench coat. She followed the buttons with her eyes, until she reached his face. Dark rings encircled his beautiful eyes; short, brilliant blood-red hair falling over them. Her own eyes widened slightly when she saw the familiar mark upon his forehead.

"O-oh… Gaara? How did you..? Are you the one who..? How did you know about..? I… Don't quite understand…" She slowly relaxed her stance, her legs quivering dangerously. Suddenly they gave out, and she saw the ground whirling towards her face, but she didn't hit it. She stared at it. "Wha..?" She murmured, realizing she was pressed against someone's chest.

"You really should take it easy. You aren't exactly in the best shape of your life. You're still healing. You just woke up from 3 days of being completely out." _Gaara_'s chest. With his arms around her waist, supporting her weight, making her blush. She grunted in pain as he lifted her up into his arms, bridal style. He looked down apologetically. She forced a smile. "Naw, it's okay. Not your fault in the least." She told him as he slowly carried her to the mouth of the tent, setting her just outside it.

"Wait…" She looked over at him putting wood in a circle together. "I was out for _3 whole days_?" She asked in disbelief, watching him nod. "Yeah. One time I thought you were dead." She narrowed her eyes at his sad expression. "I couldn't hear your heart for a while." She watched him as he started a fire from the wood that he had gathered, lighting it with his Chakra.

"You were listening to my heart?" He nodded, doing a few hand signs. "Yes. I checked three times each day. I didn't know when you would finally wake. It was almost some sort of coma." He muttered, watching the flames flicker from his hands, licking at the wood. "Wow…" Ino muttered, holding her pounding head. Once it blazed successfully, he stood up and grabbed the bag that he had left, taking it into the tent. She heard some rummaging around for a minute before he came out with the tools to make rice.

The rain picked up to a heavy drizzle, purifying the air around them. Ino inhaled slowly, a small smile on her face. "Do you like the smell?" She nodded slowly. "Yes. It has always been such a calming scent. So natural and pure." She said softly, her hands around her knees. Then they were silent for a while as Gaara prepared the rice. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched as Ino shivered slightly, scooting closer to the fire. Gaara looked over at her.

"Are you cold?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No." She replied, a little too quickly.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Well you look cold."

"But I'm not."

"Then why did you get closer to the fire?"

"Because I wanted to."

"So you're sure you're not cold?"

"Yes, I'm fine."

Silence.

"You're cold, aren't you?"

Silence.

"Yeah…"

Gaara chuckled lightly, standing up and unbuttoning his trench coat, laying it over her shoulders. Ino blushed. "A-are you sure? Won't you be cold? I could go and get the blanket if it's a problem…" Gaara shook his head, sitting back down. "It's okay, Ino. I'm fine." She stared at him for a long moment, then sighed, pulling it closer around her. "Thank you." She said softly, resting her chin on her knees. The rain had picked up a little more as they ate in silence, both staring at the slowly dying fire.

"Ino."

She grunted a soft, "Hm?", not moving.

"I think you should get some sleep. We'll be heading out tomorrow, now that you're up." She nodded slowly, pulling herself to her knees and crawling into the tent, not bothering to even get up for such a short walk. Once inside, she waited just inside the door, peeking out. "But, what about you?" She asked, frowning. He just shook his head, leaning over his shoulder. "I'll be fine here. Now go get some rest."

"But it's raining."

"I'll be fine. A little rain never hurt anyone."

"But it's cold."

"It's nothing."

"It's something."

"Ino, please." He turned fully to face her sitting just outside the tent door. She frowned, reaching out and hooking her fingers around the collar of his shirt. She pulled, and he didn't resist, knowing that she was still sore. She tugged harder, which only turned out to be a light tug, but Gaara had followed anyways, his head now in the tent. "Ino… It's okay. You don't have to worry about me. You should worry about yourself." She only kept on pulling, shaking her head. "It's not fair to you." She said, finally pulling him fully inside the tent.

"Ino—" She placed two fingers over his mouth. "Just sleep in here, please?" She pleaded softly. Gaara sighed. "Fine." She smiled, letting go and crawling over to her bed while Gaara shut the door. She began lying down, gasping as pain surged through her spine, leaving her breathless. She looked up to see Gaara suddenly at her side, helping her to slowly lie down.

"Thank you." She said softly as he pulled the blanket over her, then laying his coat over her. "It's nothing." He muttered, sitting next to her, leaning against the wall of the tent, glad he had put it up close to the tree. Ino frowned, slowly reaching up, her hand returning to his collar.

"Not again…" He groaned, sighing.

"Oh yes again. You're not sleeping like that."

"Yes I am."

"No you're not. You'll get stiff." She told him, pulling at his collar, grimacing when he didn't respond. He immediately relaxed upon hearing her pain and leaned down. "What?" He asked, annoyed, her face in his.

"Lay your ass down right now." She ordered, frowning.

He blinked. Did she just give an order to the Kazekage?

"Did you hear me? It's not good for you to sleep sitting. It's bad for your back."

He closed his eyes, sighing as she pulled again. Instead of getting angry for her order, he followed the direction of her pulling, having to shift a bit until he was lying down next to her. "Now go to sleep, Gaara. Please?" He heard her ask softly, her hand still clutched to his collar. He sighed in defeat.

"Fine."

"Thank you." She said softly, letting go of his collar and closing her eyes, soon asleep. Gaara followed after quickly.


	5. Chapter 5: Breakdown

Thanks for all of the hits and views you guys!!! =3

So this is a really short chapter. Sorry about that. But I had to cut it off here, or else it would have made the next chapter waaaay too long. But yes.

I think this is an okay chapter. Not the best of them, detail wise, but don't worry. It gets better!!!

I hope you enjoy!!

Thanks to all who read! Please continue to Read and Review!!

**Chapter 5: Breakdown**

Gaara opened his eyes, blinking a few times as he tried to remember what had woken him up. It was close to 2 in the morning, he was sure. He eyes wandered to where Ino lay. He bolted up, eyes wide. Ino was curled into a tight ball, clutching her legs tightly. Her skin was pale and clammy. The thing that disturbed him the most, though, was that tears poured from her eyes, sobbing silently in her sleep. She quivered, gritting her teeth.

Gaara placed his hand on her shoulder, rubbing it lightly. "Ino… Ino, wake up…" She then jumpstarted awake, bolting upright, her breathing quick and shallow, trembling violently. She looked up at Gaara, her eyes red. She was silent for a moment, before sobs overtook her body. She looked away, clutching herself.

Gaara stared, his eyes wide. He wasn't sure why, but seeing her like this hurt him. He looked around, trying to figure out what he should do. Then he hesitantly wrapped his arms around her, pulling her onto his lap. Ino was shocked at first, her eyes wide as she choked out sobs. Then her eyes closed as she buried her face in his chest, her arms locked around his waist.

Gaara didn't lower his arms for a long time, clutching her closer to him as he thought about her pain. She didn't seem to mind being held like this by him, which was a little odd to him. He recalled all of the times he had been called a murderer, psychotic, and cruel. Even after he had taken control of the demon within him; even after he had become Kazekage; after he had changed. The people of his village seemed to respect him, but never dared to come near. The only ones that have ever been by his side were his siblings.

Yet this girl, who had seen and surely heard about his old self, was allowing him to hold her like this. To comfort her in her time of need. He smiled slightly when her sobs quieted, and there was only the occasional sniff and a tremor. He gently rubbed her back with one hand.

His eyes narrowed at a thought that had entered his mind: this was the first time that he had ever comforted someone like this. He smile returned after a few moments; he _had_ changed.

His smile disappeared, however, as she pulled away. He immediately let her go, his eyes wide. Had he done something wrong? She was looking down, away from him. "F-forgive me…" She whispered, her voice cracking at the end. Gaara furrowed his brow, trying to recall of anything that she had done wrong, coming up with nothing.

"For what?" He looked up at him, biting her lip. For some reason, he didn't like her tearing up her lips like that. "I-I got your… I got your shirt wet…" She said softly, seeming to look guiltier as she said it. She looked back down, sniffing and wiping her eyes with the back of her hand.

Gaara looked down, touching his chest where her head had lain. _'Her tears… Her sorrow… She's apologizing for that?'_ He looked up at her, smiling slightly. "Ino… Ino, look at me. Please." After a minute, she slowly raised her head, confusion written all over her face upon seeing his smile.

"It's okay. Really. You don't have to apologize for this, don't even feel bad." He told her softly. Her mouth was slightly open, a sad, amazed smile twitching at her lips. "Th-thank you…" She said quietly, looking down at her lap. "Now try to sleep. You need your rest." He told her, reaching over to help her lay down. She didn't move for a moment, then nodded and let him help.

He watched her stare blankly at the ceiling of the tent, wiping stray tears away every few minutes. For some reason, he felt a pain in his chest, just watching her lay there like that, fighting an emotional breakdown. He sat up. "Ino." She didn't respond for a moment, and then looked over at him slowly.

"Don't forget that I'm here, and that if you need me, just let me know. Things will get better." He said softly, leaning over and pressing his lips against her forehead. "Don't worry." He told her softly, lying back down. He smiled at her before closing his eyes, leaving a wide-eyed Ino staring back at him.


	6. Chapter 6: Thoughts

Thanks sooo much for the reviews you guys! Just reading your reviews makes me squirm with delight! I appreciate you taking the time to critique. As you can tell, I'm not exactly the best fan-fic writer, but I'll try!!

I forgot to mention to you guys that this is during the Shippuden, after Sasuke leaves and all that good stuff. Sorry.

L0stL0ve: 1) Hm. That' a bit to think about. And yeah, Gaara is turning a bit OOC, I'll have to admit. Well, quite a bit, actually. XD But you know. I kinda like it. =D 2) More detail on that will come in one or two more chapters, don't worry. 3) And same with that... XD It's all set up in the next chapters. Sorry if the chapters are a tad short. Maybe eventually I'll be able to make them longer! But thanks so much for the critique!

inoblueyes2: Haha, I know. I absolutely love this couple. (Even though it's crack.) I have no place to put this in the story right now, so I'll tell you here: Her dream was pretty much just replaying her comrades deaths. She feels like she could have done more. Sorry if I spoiled it!! Thanks so much for the review!

Hanari-chan: ^___^ I don't know what else to say. XD Thank you!

Aaand I think that's everyone?

Once again, I don't own Naruto!

Thanks sooooo much to all who read and review!!!

And if you guys notice any spelling errors... Let me know. XD

* * *

**Chapter 6: Thoughts**

An hour had passed as Ino lay, pretending to sleep as her mind whirled around, jumping from one thought to the other. Gaara, Gaara, Gaara. Of all the things on her mind, each and every thought was somehow tied to Gaara, Gaara of the Desert.

She had heard so many terrifying stories about him, yet they all seemed to lack confirming proof and detail, like they had been told so many times the story had changed. Of course, she had seen him do some horrible things years ago, but nothing since. But yesterday and today had shown her a completely different picture; a whole other side of Gaara. A side no one seemed to know existed.

He had been the one to find her in a broken, bloody heap on the ground; bandage her up, changing them each day; even checking her pulse more than necessary; giving her food and shelter when she had been unable… and… comfort. He had comforted her so willingly once she had woken up from her nightmare. He had embraced her so… caring, and gentle… yet his grip was secure and protective… like he was almost… almost unwilling to let go. She sighed softly, her fingers curling into her blanket. It was so new to her… the feeling of someone other than family caring for her. Of course, Shikamaru and Chouji had comforted her and cared for her, but never quite like this. It was… nice.

She had only shown people that she cared, but never had they been returned. After she helped Sakura out during her delicate years, she had only shoved it back in her face when she betrayed her, putting her feelings for a boy over their friendship. She pretended to fight her for Sasuke's attention only to make her annoyed, fueled by the betrayal when she declared them rivals. Ino sighed, allowing her thoughts to wander more.

After that day, Ino refused to give her the satisfaction of winning, and swore that she would never lose to her. Once Sakura had begun training with Tsunade, Ino had started training on her own, creating a new competition for power herself. Before and after the training sessions with Shikamaru and Chouji, she would always go to the empty training grounds by herself. Though exhausted and growing stronger each day, she wasn't satisfied.

She then had asked Lee to borrow some of his leg and arm weights. He seemed more than willing to lend her them, even training with her sometimes.

_**"Lee! Come at me more seriously this time!" Ino yelled across the empty grounds to her partner, who was standing uncertain at the other side. "Are you sure, Ino-San?" He called back. "You have a lot of the weights on you right now. And… I don't want to hurt you." Ino shook her head, glancing at the 50 pound weights on each leg and arm. "Nonsense, Lee. It's okay. This is to make me stronger. Just start with some simple attacks if you want. I know you won't kill me!" She called; a grin on her face. He sighed, nodding. "Okay! Here goes!" He darted towards a still grinning Ino, throwing light hits and kicks at her. Ino dodged some, catching others, her grin turning to a smirk. **_

"_**Faster Lee! More power!" She demanded, feeling the thrill of adrenaline pulse through her. "Think of Gai-Sensei!" She encouraged when he hesitated, watching his eyes widen, then narrow, nodding as he obeyed, adding some combos in. Ino felt her muscles begin to protest as she dodged, but she gritted her teeth as she continued on. "Okay, great job Lee!" She panted. "Now I want you to land as many hits as you can." The fire in his eyes faltered. "B-But Ino!" Ino caught both of his fists, holding them in hers. **_

"_**Lee." She said, breathing hard. "Do this as a favor for me. I don't want you to hold back at all! I need to get stronger! I… I kind of admire you, Lee. You've always been so persistent and dedicated in your training. You've become so incredibly strong. I want that too." She said softly, a small smile on her lips. "Will you teach me?" She asked, tilting her head. His eyes were wide, almost shining as he stared at her, his cheeks turning red. "O-of course I'll teach you, Ino-san!" He stuttered, giving her a grin. She grinned back, releasing his fists.**_

_**Then he came at her much faster and harder than before, and she smirked at his compliance. She had managed to dodge the first 10 or so, and then she began blocking with her arms, knowing she would have bruises once they were done. **_

_**Suddenly, there was an explosion to her head, making her stumble back. Then another, striking the other side of her head, making her vision blur in and out. She caught a few more punches, dodging a few more before a hit to below her jaw, snapping her head upwards as she fell back, struggling to stay balanced. **_

_**Then Lee took another hit to her chest, sending her flying back into a tree, falling into a crumpled heap. She couldn't breathe for a moment, not moving as Lee ran towards her again, but his gait was different. **_

"_**I-Ino!" He was immediately at her side as she slowly sat up, his hand on her shoulder. His eyes went wide as blood trickled from her lips, dripping slowly onto the ground. **_

"_**I-Ino! I'm so sorry! Are you alright?! Please forgive me!" He cried, panicking as she sat there blinking slowly as she turned towards him, a lopsided grin on her face. "Lee… don't be sorry! You're helping me out so much! By this, I'm going to get stronger, maybe be able to match your strength!" She said, patting him on the shoulder, laughing as she wiped the blood away. **_

"_**Lee! Wipe that weird look off your face. I'm fine!" She laughed, grabbing his hand and pressing it against her chest. "Feel that? That's my heart, Lee. It's still beating."**_

_**Lee's face had gone red, his arm limp as Ino held it against her chest, afraid that if he moved, he would get a punch similar to the one Sakura always gave Naruto. He shook his head after a minute, her rapid heart beat bringing him out of his daze. "So… you're okay, Ino?" Ino laughed again. "I'm fine! I just proved it to you. But I may need help up." **_

_**Lee broke out into a smile finally upon seeing how cheerful she was. "Right away!" He stood up, pulling gently on the hand that Ino held and steadied her as she stood. **_

"_**I'd say that was a pretty good first session, Lee." Ino declared as he helped her home, her arm over his shoulder, his around her waist. "But you can barely walk!" Lee cried; a small smirk on his face. She stuck her tongue out at him. "That's what I have you for, silly!" **_

_**They arrived at her house, and Ino was able to hold herself up for a moment. "So, think you can make it same time next week?" She asked. Lee nodded. "Certainly!" He affirmed, giving her the thumbs up. "Thanks again, Lee!" Ino gave him a quick hug, making him blush. He rubbed the back of his head. "It is no problem, Ino-San!"**_

Ino smiled fondly at the memory, glad that Lee had been such a great help to her, so willing to do that for her. And… now that she thought about it more, she was really grateful to him for that. Because of their intense sessions, along with her own and the one with her team, she had been able to survive the battle. She sighed slowly. She was also glad that she had survived because… because otherwise, she never would have seen the other side of Gaara. The side that made her heart pound.

She jumped as thunder boomed ominously in the sky, the rain pouring now. She turned over slowly, facing Gaara. He looked like he was asleep, his breathing slow, deep, and even. She frowned as his expression tightened. Was he having a bad dream? She stared intently at him for a moment, his expression unchanging. She jumped again as the thunder rolled again, then took a few deep breaths. She had always loved storms, but this one was scaring her. It was incredibly loud, the rain pouring down.

She looked over to Gaara, her eyebrows forming a flat line. "Well _he_'s a deep sleeper. I wish I could sleep through this." She muttered under her breath, stretching for a moment. She looked back to Gaara, trembling slightly as the sky growled again, her heart racing. She contemplated for a minute before beginning to close the space between them, moving slow as her muscles began protesting the strange way she was moving.

Finally she was only inches away; reaching her trembling hand out, hooking it slowly into his collar. She froze when she felt him tense, her hand trembling more fiercely now. _'Did I wake him? Is he angry..?'_ She wondered, slowly pulling away, releasing her grip on his shirt.

Before she could push herself back, she felt something soft and warm on her lower back, stopping her from moving more. A hand? She looked up to see him looking back, a strange look in his eyes. Almost like he was… sorry? But there was something else too, that she couldn't quite place.

His eyes closed and she felt herself being pulled towards him, his grip becoming more solid when she was against his chest. Ino blinked a few times, unsure of what just happened. A minute passed before Ino relaxed, her fingers returning to his collar, but very lightly, gently, carefully. Gaara's other hand found hers, curing around her fingers, and she closed hers around his collar, her other hand flat against his chest. _'He's… He's… This is not… This is not the Gaara everyone tells me about…'_ She thought, her heart returning to normal as she slowly drifted to sleep.


	7. Chapter 7: Sleep Talk

Here's the next chapter, you guys! I guess this kinda starts more into the plot, but more will come later.

* * *

**Chapter 7: Sleep Talk**

He didn't know exactly why, but somehow, this felt right to him. How strange. He looked down at her sleeping form, her warm, delicate body pressed up against his chest. She looked so relaxed as she slept. He smiled, glad that she was sleeping well now.

It was getting colder as he pulled her closer to him, feeling her shivering stop. After a few minutes, he closed his eyes, feeling Ino go into a deep sleep. He felt himself falling asleep as well, his body slowly relaxing, his breathing deepening…

"No." His eyes shot open, looking down at her. "Ino?" he questioned quietly, getting no response for a minute.

"Stop telling me that… You're lying…" Her voice was slightly slurred, a half whisper. He waited quietly for her to continue.

'_She sleep talks? Hm… I thought that was just a reaction…_' He thought, remembering when she had slapped him in her sleep_. 'What is she dreaming about..?'_ He waited in silence for a few minutes. Nothing. He frowned.

"Ino? What are they lying about?" He inquired softly into her ear. He heard her groan slightly.

"This guy I know…" She murmured. Gaara half-smiled, a curious look upon his face. _'Wow… She's responding to my questions…'_

"What do they say?"

"They… tell me I should stay away from him…"

He narrowed his eyes. "How come?"

"They tell me that he's… dangerous… that he'll kill me… They tell me that he's… unstable… or something…"

Gaara tensed; his mind and heart racing. Was she dreaming about him? "What else do they tell you?" He asked slowly, closing his eyes.

"They… they say that he's cold… cruel… That he's a… a… m-mon-monster." He felt her grip on his collar tighten, pulling him closer. "B-but they lie… It's all lies… He's… he's… no monster…" Gaara's eyes opened, staring wide-eyed at her.

"Why do you say that?"

"B-because…"

Silence.

"Because why?" He pressed.

"Because he… He's not like that…"

"How so?"

"He's not dangerous if he takes care of people… He's kind…"

"Y-yeah?"

Mmmhmmm… And he's… so warm… and caring…" Her voice was beginning to get more slurred, fading slowly.

"What else do you think about him?"

"He's… Mm… I like him…" Gaara froze at her words, blinking slowly.

"Wh-why would you like someone like m-him?" He asked, quickly catching himself before he slipped.

"Because…" She mumbled, her grip loosening.

Silence.

"Because why?"

Silence.

"Ino?"

He sighed, knowing that she was done talking for the night. He felt her bury her face into his chest, her breathing slow and deep.

'_How… strange. She talks in her sleep __and__ you can ask her questions, with her responding… A bloody conversation…'_ He thought, chuckling softly.

'_What a strange girl.'_ He gently tightened his grip around her as thunder rolled above them.

'_I wonder… however… if she was only dreaming and murmuring on randomly… Or if what she said was the truth…'_ He sighed, closing his eyes and finally drifting off to sleep.

[* * * * * * * *]

Miles away…

[* * * * * * * *]

"Would you kindly clarify that for me?" A long-haired man asked acidly, glaring at the man kneeling before him. The sun had set long ago, leaving them both in darkness in the empty compound.

"Our spies had gone to Konoha and spotted the remains of a battle. It appears that…" He glanced down at his notes, pushing his round glasses up. "Team 10 of Konoha had fought there; Nara Shikamaru, Akimichi Chouji, and Yamanaka Ino. And there is a survivor."

The man standing narrowed his eyes. "So, Nara Shikamaru is still alive? Find him then, and—"

"S-sir, forgive me for interrupting, but he isn't the survivor."

"Who is it then? The fat one? Spit it out, Kabuto."

"No, apparently it's the girl, Yamanaka."

Silence.

"SASUKE!"

* * * *

He opened his eyes slowly upon hearing his name being called, black orbs staring into the darkness. He sat up, slowly standing and walking out of his room as he smoothed his raven hair. He had tried to catch a few hours of sleep, but he guessed that wasn't going to happen. He took his time as he walked to the other side of the building, walking as if he wasn't going anywhere.

Finally he reached the main room, yanking the door open and stepping inside. "What the hell do you want now?" He asked, annoyed. Orochimaru slowly stood up from his chair, his eyes narrowed.

"There was a mistake in your notes. Your weakest link made it though." He told him, slapping a packet of papers on the table, pointing to the middle line.

"What mistake?" Sasuke rudely, raising his eye brows.

"Read it."

Sasuke stared at him for a moment, then lowered his eyes to the line he was pointed at.

"_Of all the teams in Konoha, Team 10 is lowest in it's ranks. Nara Shikamaru is the strongest of the team, then Akimichi Chouji, with Yamanaka Ino falling far behind; the weakest of the team. Since at this moment most of the Shinobi are out on missions, the village will be simple to wipe out."_

Sasuke looked up. "Where is the mistake?" He asked, growing more annoyed.

He watched as Orochimaru picked up a pen, taking the paper and slowly circling something, then laying it back down. "This is your mistake." His voice was low as he controlled his anger.

He glanced at it, then narrowed his eyes.

_"with Yamanaka Ino falling far behind; the weakest of the team."_

"What are you saying, 'Roch?" Sasuke asked, completely agitated. "Are you saying that she put up the best fight or what?" He asked sarcastically, throwing his arms into the air.

"She's the only one that survived, Sasuke!" Orochimaru snapped, glaring daggers at him. Sasuke froze, eyes wide. Then he turned on him.

"What the hell do you mean?! She couldn't have survived!" Sasuke roared, nostrils flaring. _'She, of all the ninjas in Konoha, shouldn't have been able to survive this. She's the weakest of every other ninja out there!'_

"Then fix it, Sasuke." Orochimaru's voice had returned to it's deadly, silky tone.

"Is there anything in specific you had in mind?" Sasuke asked after a moment, calming down.

"I think you can figure it out."

He sighed, turning his back and walking towards the door.

"Sasuke."

He paused, not looking back.

"Don't fail me this time."

He didn't answer as he walked out, heading back to his room.

Once there, he collapsed on his bed, anger and confusion seething through him.

"Yamanaka Ino; the girl that had fought with Haruno over me, the girl who cared more about her looks than training… Of all people, how the hell did _you_ survive?"

He smirked.

"Well, you won't be a survivor much longer, Yamanaka."


	8. Chapter 8: Last Breath

Okay, here's another chapter!!

I'm hitting writer's block really bad right now, so I'm sorry if it takes longer to pump out more chapters! But I'll keep trying!!!

If any weird ideas come up, feel free to message me.

Thanks to all who read!!!!

Once again, I don't own Naruto!!!

* * *

**Chapter 8: Last Breath**

The rain had ceased by morning, leaving only the clouds in the sky. The sun peeked through a few clouds, beginning to dry up last nights mess. Ino inhaled slowly, taking in the wonderful smell. Pausing, she realized that she was also inhaling a different scent as well. She wasn't exactly sure how to describe it, but it was a warm, comforting smell. Actually, she kind of liked it.

Opening her eyes, she gasped, realizing that she was pressed up against something warm. Some_one_, she realized, had their arm around her. Her eyes wandered up as she pushed herself back, blinking several times, clearing the sleep from her eyes as Gaara's face came into view. She smiled slightly, remembering last night. Her eyes remained locked on his face, unwilling to move. He seemed so relaxed and serene.

Sitting there for a minute, she finally decided it was best she get up and moving around. Carefully, she slid down, scooting slowly out from under his arm, as to not wake him. Grimacing, she sat up, feeling more strength through her body. She smiled, turning around to Gaara and pulling the blanket more over him, centering his trench coat over his body.

Turning her back to him, she pulled her hair brush out of her bag, tearing it through her long hair. She sighed as she pulled it slowly back, leaving a section over her right eye, and tying it with the band she always kept on her wrist.

Slowly crawling out of the tent, she plopped next to the remaining pile of wood, starting it with chakra. There wasn't much left, so they would have to get some to use to make breakfast. She inhaled sharply as she heard a rustle behind her, making her turn her head quickly. She relaxed upon seeing what had caused it.

"Good morning." She said softly, smiling as Gaara slowly came out of the tent.

"Good morning." Gaara returned, blinking his eyes a few times, trying to wake up fully. He had his trench coat back on, his hair combed.

"So, how did you sleep?" She asked softly, resting her cheek on her knees.

"I slept well, thank you." His voice was quiet, almost distant. "And you?"

"I slept pretty damn well. I feel great, thanks to you."

He smiled at her, then glanced at the fire. "I'll go get some more wood. Once we eat, we'll head out." He told her, touching her shoulder as he walked past her and out of the clearing.

Ino smiled slightly at his retreating back, then slowly stood up. "I should clean up before we leave." She said softly to herself, turning away from the fire and heading to Konoha River again. Stretching as she walked, she was glad that her muscles had relaxed, making her grin.

"Faaaabulous!" She sang softly, nearing the river and kneeling down. She grimaced as she repositioned herself, holding her shoulder. "Oooh, ouch, man!" She grumbled, leaning down and splashing water on her face, glad that the wounds on her face had sealed, however, they weren't healed. Sitting up, she stared at her shoulder, sighing as she began to pull off the bandages.

One, two, three, four, five, six... She began to see spots of blood that seeped through. Eleven, twelve, and thirteen… The blood got thicker and thicker, but it was more dried than fresh. Seventeen, eighteen, nineteen…

"Geeze… Gaara must have wrapped this thing up like an OCD doctor…" She muttered, reaching twenty-five before she had to peel it from her skin. She tossed the rewound bundle aside, staring down at her shoulder.

It seemed better. Almost. There was a lot of dried blood around it, though. The bleeding had stopped, leaving a strange, thin film covering it. _'I'll have to be careful not to tear this thing open,'_ She noted, reaching for the bloodied rag and rinsing it out the best she could.

She carefully patted away the dried blood around it, pursing her lips as it stung. "It looks a bit better, now that it's been given some good old-fashioned TLC." Tossing the rag aside, she did a few hand signs. "I wonder how much of this I could heal…" She thought aloud, raising her hands to her shoulder, emitting a green glow.

Pain ripped through her shoulder as the muscles slowly began rebuilding themselves, pulling together. She gasped, barely able to hold the jutsu as her torso lowered, folding her body in thirds; legs folded beneath her. After a minute, she ended it, not wanting to lower her chakra too much.

She lay unmoving for a long time, breathing sharply after her strained effort. After gathering her strength, she slowly pulled herself up, staggering the first few steps before heading back to camp, clutching her shoulder.

Gaara hadn't returned yet, making Ino raise her brow upon seeing the empty camp. "Gaara?" She asked, looking around. There was no sign of him. She sighed, walking towards the dying fire.

"Ino!"

She jumped upon hearing her name, turning towards the sound to see Gaara walking towards her quickly, a strange look in his eye.

"Oh, Gaara, you scared me there for a minute…" She trailed off, seeing that Gaara looked angry. "A-are you o—"

"Where the hell have you been?!" He screamed at her, cutting her off.

"I-I'm sorry, I went t-to the river to clean up a-and—" She stuttered, her eyes wide. He was suddenly right in front of her, grabbing her forearms.

"I was worried about you, Ino!" He hissed, gripping tighter. "You didn't even tell me that you were going!"

"I-I'm sorry… I sh-should have told you…" She whimpered, feeling his sand clench around where his hands were, taking their place.

"G-Gaara, you're hurting me…" She gasped, trying to pull out of his hold. But she was unsuccessful. She could hardly move.

He ignored her. "Don't ever scare me like that again!" He yelled at her, his sand slowly tightening. "I-I'm s-sorry, Gaara! B-but let go! Y-you're hurting me! Plea—" She was cut off by a sharp slap from Gaara.

"Don't you dare tell me what to do." He whispered menacingly.

She looked up at him, her cheek throbbing, tears threatening to spill over. What happened to him? Why is he acting like this? _'Wh-what happened to my Gaara..?'_ She thought sadly, lowering her eyes.

"G-Gaara…" She choked, closing her eyes. "I… I-I didn't mean to upset you… B-but please… Will you p-please let go?" She whispered, hoping her soft tone would calm him down.

She froze upon feeling something cold and sharp against her neck, opening her eyes to a crazed look in Gaara's face. He had a kunai pressed against her jugular. "You're getting on my nerves."

Her tears finally poured down her face, eyes wide as she stared up at him, his cold eyes glaring back. There was no escape, she couldn't even move; he had her shoulders locked into place with his sand.

She slowly closed her eyes.

No longer will she be alone.

She'll join her comrades now.

It was time she died, anyways.

She took one last deep breath.


	9. Chapter 9: Reunion

I would have to say that this was the most difficult chapter for me to write so far.

My Microsoft Word program almost ruined my concentration when I started it up. It always gives these random tips on how to use it.

This time it gave me this one: 'You can hurt yourself if you run with scissors.'

...

Really?! I didn't know that. XD

Anyways.

Hanari-chan: I swear I could almost hear you saying that, though I have no idea what you sound like. XD

Skye-Sama: Yeah, haha, there's a lot of OOC-ness with Gaara here. So I put a note in the summary of the story. But you know. ^-^ I love this pairing too!!

Gaara'sbutterfly: Haha, shocker, no? Well read on. =D

inoblueyes2: Awww!!! Yeah, same goes for you too! Read on! Thanks for the suggestion!!

I believe that's everyone.

Thanks for reading and reviewing you guys!

And thanks to those who just read, too!!!

Thanks a billion for 300 hits and 104 visitors!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I don't own Naruto!

* * *

**Chapter 9: Reunion  
**

"Ino!"

_'That voice…'_

She opened her eyes, revealing a place she didn't know. Everything was black, simply an empty nothingness. From behind her, she felt a sudden warmness in the cold atmosphere; coming from the same direction as the voice.

She turned.

Her eyes went wide.

She couldn't believe what she saw, barely comprehending it.

But there they stood, in perfect condition, grinning at her.

"Sh-Shikamaru! Ch-Chouji! Asuma-Sensei!" She cried, running towards her comrades, flinging her arms around them in a tight embrace.

Then everything felt right again.

So, she _was_ dead.

And she couldn't have been happier.

She was reunited with her team mates; for good, this time.

Team 10 was whole again.

She pulled back after a long time, wiping the tears from her eyes. "Y-you guys look great!"

Shikamaru smiled weirdly. "Thanks. That fight was quite troublesome. But we're alright now."

"I-I'm so sorry I couldn't save you guys… " She murmured, smiling sadly. The guilt rose within her, the pain almost unbearable as she remembered their cold skin. A tremor rolled down her spine. She felt Shikamaru take her hand, Chouji taking the other as Asuma-Sensei closed the circle.

"You can't change fate, Ino." Shikamaru told her softly.

"F-fate? Was it r-really meant to be like this?" Ino questioned, feeling the tears spill over again as she lowered her gaze.

"Unfortunately." Chouji answered solemnly, squeezing her hand.

"But not all of us will die, Ino." Asuma-Sensei assured her, a slight, curious smile upon his face.

Ino looked up, hope in her eyes. "D-do some of the other ninjas make it?"

They all nodded simultaneously.

"Then there is some hope left for Konoha, even if it is just a flicker." Ino whispered, smiling slightly.

"Hey, Ino." She looked over at Chouji, tilting her head slightly. "Yeah?"

"Thanks for taking care of our bodies after we… died…" Chouji said carefully, his voice soft.

"Yeah, thanks for that, Ino. I know it took a lot out of you; must have been troublesome." Shikamaru added.

Ino forced a smile, shaking her head. "It was nothing. Anything for you guys. You know I love all three of you, right?" She told them, giving each of them a peck on the cheek, even her Sensei. She watched them all break out into smiles, Shikamaru and Chouji looking almost embarrassed.

"We love you too, Ino."

"That's good to know." She replied, smiling at Asuma-Sensei.

She paused for a second, a thought edging in the back of her mind.

"Asuma-Sensei?"

"Yes, Ino?"

"You said that some of us will live through this. Who are they?"

He frowned, pursing his lips. "I can't be exact in my predictions, so I'm not exactly sure myself."

"Do you know of at least one that has a good chance?" She pressed, curiosity burning through.

"Yes."

Silence.

"Who, then?"

Asuma-Sensei just smiled at her, patting her hand.

"I'll show you."

* * * *

She didn't remember falling, but somehow, she was on the ground. What happened? Where did Shikamaru, Chouji, and Asuma-Sensei go? She slowly opened her eyes, blinking slowly as she tried to clear the fog. Oh, she felt so numb. She saw something off to the side. Her eyes wandered over, seeing something black and thin. Was that a kunai?

She blinked some more, her vision clearing just enough to confirm her prediction. She stared at it. No, scratch that. She _glared_ at it, trying to piece together what had just occurred. Her beloved team mates were by her side just a moment ago, her dead along with them. Why was she here? Was she reliving her death?

She slowly was able to pick up her other arm, trembling as it neared the kunai. Then she grasped it, inhaling sharply as the pain exploded; like someone wrenching her shoulder from her body. Even after she let go, it continued on, like a wild fire devouring a dried up forest during a drought. Unstoppable as the flames licked at her skin. Finally she was able to focus her dull blue eyes on it, confused. The kunai had been dug into her shoulder, just barely missing her jugular. But something didn't quite fit… Why would a simple kunai hurt like this? It made no sense to her.

She reached for it again, clasping her fingers around it before yanking it out, dropping it next to her. The pain had lessened after it was removed, now a sharp, piercing ache. Then she waited. Waited for the replay of her final breath leaving her body.

But she was still breathing, sharp and shallow, but still breathing.

What was going on?

Her vision finally had cleared to a point of seeing detail, her eyes on the sky above her. She flinched as a raindrop hit her forehead, blinking a few more times as they started to fall, slowly and softly.

Then she heard it.

She hadn't realized that there was no sound until now.

It came on gradually, starting with the softest sounds.

First: the sound of heavy breathing, like someone had just got done with a work out.

Second: the sound of feet shuffling around, sometimes picking up to a run then stopping suddenly, then running again.

The third sound was more difficult to describe. Almost like the sound of water crashing up against the sand on the beach, yet, it didn't quite sound like water. It sounded like something entirely different, like sand crashing up against… sand? Impossible. She saw movement on her other side.

She slowly turned towards it, pulling herself up with all the strength she had, then immediately regretted it as her head spun. She clutched her forehead with one hand, her other hand clutching the grass beneath her. It felt like the world had tilted to the side, trying to pull her with it as the center of gravity changed.

All she could do was sit there for a few more moments, her spinning world slowly stopping. Looking back up, she saw two figures, both moving too quickly for her to pick out much detail. She watched, confused as something else followed their movements, something much larger and faster. There were also two of them, both running into each other over and over again. The sound slowly rose, making her cringe just to hear it scrape together.

She breathed slowly, pulling the air in, pushing it back out. Another breath. Why was she still breathing? Was it out of pure habit? She held her breath, her eyes going wide as her lungs began to ache. She let herself resume breathing, feeling the pain from her lungs subside. This didn't make sense.

Wasn't she dead?

Her head pounded furiously as she looked back over at the two figures, her vision more clear now as she focused in on only one of them. Her breath caught in her throat as she recognized the blood-red hair, the long auburn trench coat that swung behind him as he jumped to the side. She barely made out the Japanese character of 'Love' on his forehead.

Gaara.

She swallowed dryly, looking to his opponent. He also had hair very similar to Gaara's. No, more like, exactly like Gaara's. She bit the inside of her lip. She hadn't ever met someone with hair like Gaara's. Not as brilliant as his. Was he the one who had saved her? Some random ninja that happened to come across her just in time to save her life? She didn't know what to think as she studied the rest of him, her brow furrowing as she took in the rest of his features.

Realization hit her just then, her heart thudding loudly in her chest.

Gaara's opponent didn't just look like him.

He _was_ him.

How was that possible?

She gasped, staring dumbfounded at the battling two, the sand from each gourd colliding ferociously against each other, blocking each attempt at an attack. She could only watch the battle, unable to do anything. She doubted she could stand at that moment anyways. Even if she did interfere, what if she attacked the wrong one? She settled for trying to figure it out, watching them battle.

Wracking her mind for an answer, she could only come up with one thing, the only thing close enough to a logical explanation: a henge. Yet, even if it were true, how could he be able to control his sand as well? The henge goes back to being a simple Academy jutsu. Had a more advanced stage been discovered?

Her racing heart almost stopped when she saw one of them look at her, if only for a second, then turned back to his battle. Only he was a fraction of a second too late, giving the other one just enough time to hit him with his sand. He flew back, crashing into a tree, snapping it in half and falling to the ground with it.

The standing Gaara took a few steps toward her. "Are you alright?" He asked quickly, his voice a careful whisper. Her mouth slowly opened, unsure of what to say. But before she could answer, he was wrenched back, sand quickly ensnaring his feet and arms as it lifted him into the air, sand covering the rest of his body. Ino's eyes darted to where the other Gaara stood, already gotten up, his hand outstretched, fingers curled. It all looked so strange to her. He mouthed something too quiet for her to hear as he clamped his hand shut, performing his Desert Funeral.

It took everything she had to get herself breathing again as she tried to get a hold of herself. She looked down at her hands, raggedly pulling in a short breath, her body trembling violently. As she began blowing it out, she heard quick footsteps, coming straight towards her. Impulsively, her head would have jerked up to not lose precious seconds of being off guard. But this time, she decided it was best she move slowly, knowing that any sudden movements right now would make the center of gravity move again.

She raised her arms in front of her in defense, not bothering to take the kunai she had pulled out of her shoulder. Wouldn't have done much use, even if she did try to use it; her equilibrium was too out of whack. She closed her eyes, only to open them again when the footsteps stopped.

"I-Ino…"

She slowly looked up to his face, recent memories of his crazed look flashing behind her eyes. Her teeth tore at the inside of her lip again. He took another few steps towards her, and Ino leaned back, cringing.

"Ino… It's me. I swear to you." He told her, his voice soft, almost shaky.

"P-prove it." She demanded, though her voice was barely a whisper.

He closed the distance between them with three steps, kneeling down beside her as she leaned away from him, her arms still up. She felt his hand close around one of hers, and she was shocked to find that it was gentle. Her eyes widened as he brought it up to his neck, hooking both their fingers around his collar. Tears formed as his hand closed around hers.

"G-Gaara…" She choked, the tears streaming freely down her face, a half smile on her face. "I-it's you…" She whispered, falling into his chest. His familiar arms encircled her, gently bringing her closer.

Gaara was silent for a long time, clutching the woman tightly.

Clutching the woman he almost lost.

He struggled for words until he finally choked out:

"You're alive…"

* * *

The battle scene was really difficult to write, so I made it short. I hope it makes sense. XDAs for the henge, I believe that's right... Only being able to take on the form of another, not the abilities. Am I correct?

If not, should I edit or leave it like it is?

But yeah, sorry if it's sad. I don't know if it's sad to you, but I cried after Shikamaru mentioned fate.

(I don't know if it's actually sad, or if I was really tired, because it was 5 in the morning when I wrote this.)

Well, please review on this chapter! Tell me what you think!

Sorry if it's short!

Thanks to all my readers!!!


	10. Chapter 10: Pain

Hey guys! I'm back with another chapter.

I'm sorry if things don't exactly make sense right now. I've hit writers block for this segment of the story. This was difficult to write as well. I wanted to pump out another chapter before I went brain dead. It prolly isn't the best at the moment, but I can edit if you guys think I should. I dunno. Let me know.

I hope you like it! I don't own Naruto!!

Thanks to all my readers and reviewers!!!

inoblueyes2: Sorry if it was confusing. It was really difficult to write. But read on, and it will explain everything.

L0stL0ve: ^_____^ I agree!!! More flashbacks are to come, don't worry. And with her Clan Jutsu's, I'm finding an exact place for it in the story. ^__^ Thank you. I'm not fond of the snake or Sasuke either. As for age, I decided to put them at around 19 or 20, depending on when ther birthdays were. It doesn't really make sense, but yeah. Au. XD And Oh the possibilities!!! And thank you. Ino has yet to show more of her actual personality, because of the loss of her comrades and village. But don't worry! More to come. And yes!!! They so belong together. Like pb and j. OMFG THAT FITS. Pb is like the color of sand and J is usually purple, Ino's color!! Woot. And man oh man, you're so nice. Thank you thank you thank you!! I appreciate your critique very much!!!

Gaara'sbutterfly: Why thank you! I'm glad you liked it. And possibly. I tried to chose someone to use that might possibly be able to fit right. I know he's dead, but you know. AU.

Hanari-chan: Haha, once again, I could almost hear you say that! ^____^ Just reading it makes me hyper.

THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH!!!

163 Hits and 61 Visitors in LESS THAN THREE DAYS!!!

I LOVE YOU GUYS!!!

* * *

**Chapter 10: Pain**

"Kidomaru failed?!" Sasuke's fist came down on the metal table, creating a large dent. "Why did he fail to kill her?! How?! What happened?"

Kabuto began to pace slowly. "We sent someone to verify what had happened. Apparently, she had someone with her."

"Just say it, Kabuto! All of it!" Sasuke spat, glaring at the grey-haired man.

"Sabaku no Gaara was with her. It had been reported that Kidomaru acted of his own accord upon seeing him. When he left, he did a henge of Gaara in order to get in close proximity to her without problems, then had gone to kill her with the given kunai. However… Gaara had returned before he could eliminate her soul."

By now, Sasuke was seething, turning on his heel to glare daggers out the window. _'Why is she so difficult to snuff out?'_

"Did he manage to puncture with the kunai?" He asked suddenly, looking over his shoulder. Through his rage, he managed a smirk at Kabuto's nod.

"Indeed, although he had missed the jugular when Gaara had returned. This will slow the process quite a bit, and greatly lower the chances of success." At this, Sasuke frowned.

"Nonetheless, with the process slowed, she will suffer greatly throughout it if it remains undetected." Kabuto added, watching Sasuke grin cruelly as he turned back to the window.

"What kind of pain will she be in?"

He heard Kabuto almost laugh behind him.

"Since she is still among the living, it's worse than being burned alive and being drowned at the same time, to put it simply. During the first few hours, the pain will come on gradually, increasing slowly. She will first feel the burning. After, she will realize that it's difficult to breathe; like she can't pull in enough air in just one breath. That will cause her breathing to speed up, increasing the speed of the heart as well, making the poison spread faster. Then, after time, it will feel like her lungs can't hold enough air to sustain her. And eventually, that will be the case during the final stage, where both pains collide and take her life. Do you want more information?"

Sasuke was quiet for a long time, staring out into the bright day before them, the sunlight playing on his tense face.

"And if it's detected?" He asked softly, not moving his gaze. Now it was Kabuto's turn to be quiet as he worked out a way to put his words. After a few moments, he spoke, explaining carefully.

"It's similar to cancer, in a way. The sooner it is found, the easier it will be to remove. As the days infected increases, so does the difficulty of removing it. If left for too long, it will be too late."

"Leave." He muttered, reaching up to rub his temple. "Now." He added harshly, hearing Kabuto about to protest. It was silent for a moment. Sasuke turned around, walking across the now empty room and closing the door. He needed to think. He returned to his place at the window, perching himself in the sill, leaning against the side as Kabuto's words replayed in his head.

"_Since she is still among the living, it's worse than being burned alive and being drowned at the same time… …Then, after time, it will feel like her lungs can't hold enough air to sustain her. And eventually, that will be the case during the final stage, where both pains collide and take her life."_

Where both pains collide and take her life…

Take her life…

_Eventually_ take her life…

He felt himself grow livid again at the thought. Why couldn't she just die now? Why couldn't Kidomaru finish the job as ordered? His hands clenched into fists. He couldn't exactly figure out why this bothered him so much. Was it the fact that he had been wrong so far in all of his predictions? That she proved him wrong without realizing it? He leaned his head back against the wood, closing his weary eyes.

"Yamanaka… If I could crush you with my hands right now, I'd be a happy man…"

[* * * * * * * *]

"Just a few more miles and we'll arrive in Suna."

Ino looked up, slightly startled. "O-oh, okay." She replied softly, grinding her teeth together as they jumped through the trees. She pushed herself faster, knowing that she was going much slower than her usual pace. Gaara didn't complain. Though, he hadn't really even said anything at all.

Clutching her neck, Ino pressed her lips together, silencing any sort of sound about to come out. The pain had lessened, of course, but only slightly. She was glad that she was behind Gaara, so he wouldn't see her stagger in her gait every so often due to the sudden throbs of pain. She didn't want him to know just how much it hurt.

After their confrontation with the fake Gaara, the real Gaara rewrapped her shoulder and neck. They had a quick meal and simply headed out, none of them saying a single word as they ate, nor as they traveled. She didn't exactly mind the silence so much. It gave her some time to think without interruption. She still had a difficult time believing that she was actually still alive. The agony of her newly acquired wound kept her from the brink of insanity.

Even with her contradictory thoughts, something else edged in the back of her mind. Something she still couldn't believe.

_**Ino watched his hands as he carefully wrapped her shoulder, maneuvering the roll slightly as he changed the course, covering up the new wound on her neck. She avoided his glances, keeping her eyes down as his eyes bored into hers. She took a deep breath, then blew it out, not taking in another as she held it.**_

_**She waited.**_

_**Then frowned as her test failed again, pulling in a breath to relieve her lungs.**_

_**Why did she still need air?**_

_**Why was her heart still beating in her chest?**_

_**She bit the inside of her lip, then gasped quietly, cringing as Gaara pressed the bandages into place. He stared at her for a long time, eyes unmoving from her face. **_

"_**Does it hurt?"**_

_**She looked up at him, forcing a smile. "Only a little bit." She lied, trying to keep her face as smooth as possible. In truth, she wanted to scream, find something, **_**anything**_** to stop the torture.**_

"_**Are you certain?" He pressed, his eyes slightly narrowed. She nodded, still smiling for a minute, then she looked down. It was silent for a moment.**_

"_**Gaara?"**_

"_**Yes?" His careful eyes watched her, still looking away from him. She clasped her hands together, squeezing tightly.**_

"_**I… I have a question." He waited in silence for her to continue, not looking away for even a moment, studying her every move. **_

"_**How… How am I… Still… Still alive?" She asked, her voice barely a whisper. "I mean… I **_**was**_** dead. I remember it. I saw my team… So if I died… How can I still be living?"**_

_**Gaara was silent for a long moment, his eyes taking in her confused expression. Almost five minutes had passed of complete silence, both of them sitting together, unmoving.**_

"_**Maybe you're here for a reason; one of those who have a true purpose in the world. Perhaps you were given a second chance because there is something you still need to do." He said at last, watching as her eyes darted to his. **_

'**What did he just say?'**_** She stared at him, unbelieving that those words just came out of his mouth. He simply stared back for a moment, before standing and walking away to make breakfast.**_

Finally, the slit in the cliff face had come into view, marking their arrival in Suna. They were immediately greeted by the village guards, staring undoubtedly at Ino as she stumbled along behind him. Just in front of the Kazekage building, the door burst open as a girl with blond hair pulled up in four pigtails ran out, eyes wide as she stopped short, staring at Ino as well. She recognized her as Temari, Gaara's older sister.

"Gaara… What happened..?" She asked, her eyes darting from Gaara's face to Ino, then gliding down her body as she took in her condition, then returning to Gaara. Ino watched the two as they talked for a few quick seconds, Temari's eyes wide. She couldn't catch anything, but she knew exactly what they were talking about.

She gripped her neck tighter, trying to keep her face composed as she waited patiently for them to finish. She cursed silently as she widened her stance, feeling her world tilting once more. _'Don't you dare go down, don't you dare go down, don't you dare go down! You're Yamanaka Ino! You can handle this!'_ She screamed in her head, struggling to stay up as the center of gravity moved again, trying to pull her with it.

After only a minute of talking, Gaara stepped back, eyeing his sister. Her expression had changed suddenly, looking confused and freaked out instead of her once horrified expression.

"Gaara!" She cried, watching something behind him. He narrowed his eyes. What is she freaking out about? He followed her gaze, turning his torso.

And he froze, eyes wide as Ino fell to the ground in a crumpled heap, her body trembling as she held her neck. Immediately he was at her side, his hands around her shoulders. Temari had run off, calling for the medics.

"I-I'm f-fine… G-Gaara…" Ino muttered quietly, her grip tightening around her wound. "J-just lost m-my balance is all…" She assured him, trying to force a smile again as she glanced up at him.

"Don't lie to me, Ino, it hurts, doesn't it?" He asked quickly, his voice low and sharp.

She remained silent for a few minutes, taking a few ragged breaths, eyes closed. Medics had arrived, swarming in around the two on the ground.

"F-fine. It hurts… It h-hurts like hell… H-happy?" She groaned, lowering her head again. Suddenly she felt herself being lifted up, and she opened her eyes to find herself being laid on a stretcher.

Gaara stood, watching her being carried away, his eyes carrying a strange emotion.

"No, Ino. I'm not."


	11. Chapter 11: Unexpected

EDITED!!!

Hello all!! Here's another chapter for you. Much longer than the others... ^_____^ Yay me. I do hope it's okay. Let me know what you think!!

This is slightly a filler chapter, but it still has some significant points in it. I'm fighting my writers block with everything I have, and I'm hoping I'll win!! I think I can pump out one more chapter easily. But I'm sure more will just automatically come out as I type. It usually happens like that. I can't just write with a pen. Too slow. XD But I'm fighting it!!! ^____^ Thanks for all you're support, guys!!!

(I changed a few things in it. Only how Gaara was addressed. Good point, L0stL0ve. ^___^ Thank you. I'll go more into your review next chapter.)

THANKS FOR 330 HITS AND 114 VISITORS IN LESS THAN FIVE DAYS!!!

Hanari-chan: Hahahaha, I love the evil look. But yeah, Sasuke is a jerk. OMFG I got you to like the pairing?!?!?! YAY!! *Gobbles a cookie and gives one to Gaara* Thank you!!! And possibly. I'm not sure exactly where and when but possibly.

Skye-Sama: Haha, yeah, Sasuke is just a plain jerk in this. It's not too hard to hate him. XD Thank you!!! More lurve coming up!!!

I don't own Naruto! If I did I would so put these two together!!! ^____^

Thanks a billion to my readers!!!!

**Chapter 11: Unexpected**

"He isn't going to like this…" Temari murmured, walking slowly through the halls of the tower. It had been a week since his return, and the Kazekage was still buried in paperwork from his absence. During that week, Ino had still remained in the hospital, and Gaara hadn't been able to visit her nor had he heard anything about her condition. Somehow, this seemed to cause a slight change in the way Gaara acted, so subtle, only his two siblings had noticed, mainly Temari. Kankuro only suspected he was getting annoyed with the amount of work to be done, but Temari had paid a little more attention than her brother.

At his desk, the Kazekage had always sat so incredibly still and quiet, eyes unmoving from his work, his pen moving at a constant pace. Lately, though, his actions began to give away his growing anticipation. His eyes would glance away from his work to the clock, only to dart back before a second could pass. As the third day rolled around, he would hesitate for a moment in his writing, like he had lost his train of thought, then resume after a few seconds. Temari had even seen him pacing once. She sighed, ascending the stairs as she thought about yesterday

_**Holding a cup of tea in one hand, Temari raised the other, gently knocking on the door with the back of her knuckles. She waited, hearing nothing from the Kazekage's office. "I'm coming in…" She told him after a moment, waiting a few more seconds before slowly turning the handle, opening the door and peeking her head through. **_

_**"A-are you… Alright?" She asked uncertainly, staring at her younger brother. He had his head buried in his hands, like he was holding it up, and his paperwork had been shoved to the side. **_

_**"Maybe you should take a break and relax for a while, Gaara…" She suggested quietly, walking up and placing the tea on his desk.**_

_**"I'm fine, Temari."**_

_**"But you've been working nonstop since you returned!"**_

_**"There's still work to be done." He slowly raised his head, opening his bloodshot eyes. **_

_**Temari raised an eyebrow at his unusually calm tone. Typically, he would have snapped at her by now. She frowned as she took in his state. She bravely raised her voice slightly, continuing on.**_

_**"You should at least get some sleep, you look terrible! Please Gaa—"**_

_**"Enough! I'm fine!" He roared, suddenly on his feet, gripping the desk. "Must I tell you again?"**_

_**Temari took a step back, swallowing as she remembered the way he used to threaten her and Kankuro with death. She raised her hands, palms out.**_

_**"F-forgive me, Gaara-San… I have overstepped my bounds." She said softly, turning and walking towards the door and stepping out, closing it behind her slowly.**_

_**"Temari."**_

_**She paused, her heart thudding in her chest as she reappeared in the doorway.**_

_**"Y-yes, Gaara?"**_

_**He was silent for a long time, his eyes boring into hers. He no longer looked angry like he was a second ago. The only thing that seemed to be left was exhaustion. A second emotion as well… was that… worry?**_

_**"Get me a report on her."**_

_**Temari blinked. "On who, Gaara?"**_

_**"Yamanaka-San. She is a guest to Suna and I expect her to be having the best possible treatment as she recovers. Tell the doctors that if she receives any mistreatment, I will not be pleased." He told her softly, sitting back down in his chair. **_

_**Temari stared at him for a moment, her eyes soft as she thought about it. There had to definitely be something more to this than her just being a guest. She smiled softly.**_

_**"Of course." With that, she turned to leave.**_

_**"Temari,"**_

_**She paused again, turning over her shoulder, hand resting on the door knob. "Yes?"**_

_**He was silent again; his eyes lowered to what she had placed on his desk.**_

_**"Thank you." He murmured, looking up to watch her vaguely.**_

_**"You're welcome."**_

_**She closed the door gently and made her way back down the stairs, slapping her cheeks lightly. "Don't you get mushy over this, Temari." She told herself. "Gaara's too tired to think straight right now so of course he's not going to act normal." She reasoned, then sighed after a few minutes. "But… Even so… Something else is going on."**_

She felt herself smile slightly as she hit the last step, coming to a stop in front of a door. Her frown returned as she looked at what she held in her shaking hands. Something about this girl was affecting him, similar to how that Uzumaki Naruto did. Yet… she couldn't help but feel that there was more to it. A lot more. Gaara had never acted like this before, never seeming stressed about someone else.

This girl, whether she realized it or not, had an impact on his thoughts.

She had an impact on his actions.

His entire being.

* * * *

Gaara slowly opened his eyes, the warm sunlight pulling him from the depths of sleep. He blinked. Sleep? Sitting up, he stared at the window, narrowing his eyes. When did he fall asleep? He had only lain down on the couch to close his eyes for a moment. Apparently it had been a lot longer than that. He sighed as he pulled himself up to stand, walking to the window and peering out. It had to have been at least noon by now, judging by the place the blistering sun held in the sky.

He turned upon hearing a soft, hesitant knock at his door. He stared at it for a moment, as if contemplating whether or not to let them in.

"You may enter," He said finally, watching as Temari slid into the room, her eyes on the floor. He frowned. She looked extremely nervous, her fingers tapping anxiously against something in her hands.

"Th-this is for you, Gaara. The report that you requested. From the hospital." She avoided his piercing stare, her eyes still on the floor as she held out a manila envelope, her hands trembling ever so slightly.

Gaara took it quickly, color draining from his face as he stared at it; a first for him. Temari glanced up, shoving her eyebrows together as her head snapped up.

"No, no, it's nothing like that… She's… fine." She said carefully, stepping back as Gaara opened it, his usual mask of tranquility returning as he reached for the paper, pulling it out and unfolding it. He frowned. There wasn't much on the page. He took a silent, deep breath, then let his eyes scan the page.

_"__Our Dearest Kazekage-Sama:_

_We know how busy you are, so we tried to make this as brief as possible. _

_Yamanaka Ino had been admitted into our critical condition ward as of yesterday. It appears that she had been poisoned with a very potent substance. The type of poison is unknown. During the first few days of her admittance, Yamanaka-San had passed all of our examinations, nothing of familiarity showing in her bloodstream. We had examined and tested her in every way possible until day four, when she started showing new symptoms. Her breathing had quickened, and she has some difficulty in getting air. Her body temperature has dropped dramatically; however, she had expressed a strong burning sensation all over her body, mainly at the point of her injury._

_On day five, the flesh around her neck had become grey; it had begun to spread too quickly, and we had to remove it as means of surgery. We had examined the extracted flesh and we have detected something foreign, something alive. Our medics have been working around the clock to try to remove the substance from her body. The amount of the substance, however, hasn't gone down by much. It seems to be growing, multiplying itself constantly. We will continue this process until it is all removed. Unfortunately, we are sorry to tell you, Yamanaka-San is suffering greatly, as none of our medicines have been able to relieve her of the pain. _

_Even with this news of her condition, please note that we will do everything in our power to save her._

_Our Best Regards,_

_Suna Hospital_

Gaara felt himself begin to shake, beginning to pace, rereading the letter over and over again. He tried to relax his grip on the paper as he slowly folded it back up, sliding it into the envelope. Pausing, his fingers grazed something else, a smaller paper folded into a small square. Pulling it out, he dropped the envelope onto his desk as he unfolded it. His eyes narrowed to read the elegant writing.

_"Gaara-_

_I heard that the doctor was going to send you a report on how I'm doing… I hope he didn't make it sound worse than it really is. I'm doing great. Don't worry about me. You have more important things to do. Just wanted to let you know I'm okay. Are you okay? I hope so. I can't wait to get out of this place. Hospitals SUCK!! _

_-Ino"_

He stood there quietly for a moment, pulling the hospital's letter out and glanced back and forth between the two. Somehow, they didn't exactly match up in his mind.

"Have you seen her?" He asked his sister, his back towards her.

"Yes, I have once. When I picked up the report." She said softly, wringing her hands.

"How is she really, Temari?" His voice was slow, soft, as if not wanting to hear the answer anyways. He waited for her response, but only silence greeted him. He turned around to see her biting her lip, seeming to be thinking about something.

She was, actually, thinking about her. She recalled so clearly her short visit to the hospital.

_**She had waited patiently at the front desk as the secretary paged the doctor. She had to do it a few times, since he hadn't returned the page.**_

"_**Doctor Tanashi, you're keeping your guest waiting an awfully long time." The secretary had said into a speaker phone, obviously nervous.**_

_**A few seconds had passed, and she had reached for the button to page again, then stopped as the light came on.**_

"_**I'm coming, I'm coming. I just had to deal with…" He was cut off by a loud crash from his end. Temari and the secretary stared at the speaker. "Damn it, that hurt! Stop throwing things! My answer is no!" They heard him yell to someone else. They heard a female voice at the other end, yelling just as loud as him, but they couldn't tell what she was saying.**_

"_**How many times must I tell you? No visitors!" He cried, then another crash, the female voice screaming again. "Stop that! I told you no visitors until you are well!" Another crash. "Damn it! I said no!" Temari had gone wide-eyed, staring intensely at the speaker still. **_

"_**What's going on..?" Temari asked suddenly, hearing another crash.**_

_**The secretary sighed, but before she could reply, the doctor had appeared, looking very unhappy. His jacket was wet, and he had a bump on his head. "**_**Please**_** come with me." He asked, his voice almost pleading as he turned around. Hesitantly, she followed him. They went up three flights of stairs, people growing fewer and fewer until they reached the final floor. It was practically desolate. **_

_**He led her to a room and stood to the side. She reached for the door, grasping the handle and listening. It was almost silent. She could hear murmurs of a few different people. She also heard a quiet beeping sound, going at a fast, uneven pace. Narrowing her eyebrows, she slowly opened the door and walked in, the doctor shutting it promptly behind her. She looked around the room. There were many people there, some were sitting in chairs, drinking coffee and eating some bread. Some of them were sweeping up broken glass, another soaking up the water on the ground. She guessed it was a broken vase, probably what had made the doctor wet. All the ones sitting down looked exhausted, eyeing something on the other side of the room.**_

_**She turned towards it, pursing her lips. There were six medics surrounding someone on a bed, their hands glowing as they made their way up and down the body. She stepped closer, and the medics had lowered their hands, all of them backing away quickly. She stared as they walked away, even the ones that had been sitting down. She caught one of them by the arm. "Why are you leaving?" She asked, watching him as he stared back at her, fear in his eyes as he glanced behind him to the bed. "Never, **_**ever**_**, make her angry." He whispered, walking away as soon as she released her grip.**_

"_**Temari-Sama!"**_

_**Startling slightly, she turned quickly to the voice. And her mouth slowly fell open, her eyes wide as they took in the sight before her.**_

_**Her skin was pale and clammy, her thin fingers interlocked on her lap, squeezing so tight that her knuckles managed to become whiter than her skin. Her chest rose and fell astonishingly fast, as if she had gotten done with an intense training session, yet there was no sign of sweat or physical exhaustion. Just after one second, she had taken two breaths. The beeping sound from earlier, she now realized, was monitoring the speed of her heart; just as fast. A bloody bandage was wrapped around where her neck and shoulder met. Temari raised her gaze to Ino's face, shocked to see a smile upon her bony face. **_

"_**It's good to see you! How are you doing?" Her voice was scratchy, yet carrying a cheery tone. Temari struggled for words.**_

"_**I-I am well, thank you."**_

"_**That's good. Is Gaa—, I mean, is the Kazekage doing well?" She asked between breaths.**_

"_**The Kazekage is… doing okay. He is very busy at the moment, catching up on his work from his absence." Temari raised an eyebrow at the girl before her as she pulled something from under her pillow. **_

"_**Will you please take this to him for me? The doctor refused to let me put it in with the report that he was giving. Even if he let me, I had a feeling he would take it out and throw it away." She said in a hushed tone, holding out a small, folded piece of paper in her shaking fingers. Temari nodded, reaching out and taking it gently from her, placing it into her pocket. It took everything in her power to not shudder at the iciness of her skin.**_

"_**Thank you. I really appreciate it."**_

"_**It's nothing."**_

_**It was silent for a while as Temari watched Ino's face. It jumped back and forth from tranquility to agony, and Temari guessed that she was trying to hide the fact that she was in pain. She decided not to bring that up.**_

"_**About earlier… What exactly happened..?" Temari asked suddenly, unable to contain her curiosity. She tilted her head as she watched Ino began to laugh lightly, a small smirk on her delicate lips.**_

"_**Well… I heard that you were coming to pick up a report from him and so I asked to be able to speak with you. I even asked nicely, saying please a billion times. That idiot refused and so I kinda got angry with him." She said it nonchalantly; shrugging like it was an everyday thing. Temari looked around the room, noticing that many things were broken, and that there were dents in the walls.**_

'**She has a temper like Gaara…'**_** Temari thought as the pieces fell together. They both jumped at the door opening, the doctor walking in stiffly. "You're five minutes is up." He said calmly, appearing to have gone for a coffee break to relax and change his clothes. Temari patted Ino's hand softly. "Feel better, okay?" She told her, walking slowly out of the room. **_**'For your sake and his…'**_** She thought, taking the manila envelope from the doctor, continuing on her way.**_

_**She almost tripped down the flight of stairs when a hair-raising scream echoed through the halls, causing her heart to thud loudly in her chest as she turned and looked back up to the door she had exited. The medics had returned, resuming their positions, some of them standing outside the door. They were staring inside, a strange, pained look on their faces. She pulled herself away, not wanting to see what they saw. She headed swiftly down the stairs and out the door.**_

"Temari?" She jumped up at hearing her name, her eyes meeting Gaara's. She sighed.

"She's… She's ill. I'll be honest. She didn't look so good. But the way she acted proved differently." She said cautiously, measuring his reaction.

"How was she acting?" He asked, eyeing her.

"Well… From what I heard over the speaker… She was practically throwing things at the doctor in order for me to come into the room. She said that the doctors wouldn't let her put her note with their report, so she gave it to me. She pretty much broke everything within reach over the doctor's head because she got so mad."

Gaara blinked, narrowing his eyes. "What do you think?"

Temari thought for a moment, then looked up at her brother. "I don't have a doubt in my mind that she'll recover. She's pretty tough. Not to mention violently stubborn." She assured, forcing a smile.

They both jumped as someone suddenly rushed into the room, slamming the door open. Gaara slid the papers under his work, shoving Ino's note into his pocket. "Kankuro! You know better than to barge in here unannounced. There had better be something important going on…" Gaara said acidly, glaring at his brother.

"There were some ninja spotted a few miles outside the gates. They're headed this way."

"Intentions?" Gaara pressed, one single thought edging in the back of his mind.

"Unknown. There are three of them. One has short raven hair; the other has long dark hair; and third has short dark hair. That's all the information the guard reported."

Gaara almost felt his heart stop.

"Don't let them slip away. Capture them and confirm their identities immediately. And whatever you do, don't you dare let them near the hospital. Report back to me as soon as you have more information." Gaara ordered harshly, watching his two siblings rush out of the room.

He stood alone, trying to work his breathing and heart rate down to a normal level. He needed to be calm before he stepped out. He began walking towards the door. Suddenly, his brother was back, bounding into the room.

"You'll never believe who just showed up!"


	12. Chapter 12: Impossible

Hey guys!!!! I'm sooo sorry for the late update. I had a lot of trouble with this chapter. My writers block is all like: "No, you must not write!" And I'm like: "Damn it yes I must!!!" So yeah. This is kinda sad, actually. *sigh*

Sorry if it jumps around a lot, but it will get a bit more organized next chapter.

Aaaand sorry if it's not all that great... This was a difficult chapter to write. Forgive me for this one!!!

Now on to the reviews!

L0stL0ve: I took that into account, about how she's affecting others. Thank you! And yes, my writers block is being really difficult with me right now, but I'll keep on pumping out the chapters for you guys. It might take a bit longer sometimes, but I'll keep on it and I wont just dump this story like many other authors have. And I fixed how Temari addressed Gaara. That was a good point. As for the sand, I'm making it so that it is completely under his control, if that makes sense. X] Ah yes, persistent, stubborn Ino. I love that girl. ^_^ And Yes, the snake and the traitor are evil jerks. As for Ino... *sigh* Read this chapter. And as more more appearances.... You'll see. I'm not exactly sure who I want to come in yet. But thank you sooooo much for your critique and your review!!! I'm glad you like it!!!

Skye-Sama: Haha, unfortunately, you wont find that out until maybe next chapter or the chapter after that. ^-^

Hanari-chan: Haha, thank you. But like I said above... You'll have to wait for the next chapters. But yes... Poor Ino... This chapter will explain some.

inoblueyes2: ^____^ Thank you! I'm glad you like it. Don't worry, I won't bail out on you guys! I'll keep on keepin.

kiwi4me: ^___^ Thaaank you!!! I'll continue, don't worry. (Love your name by the way. Kiwi's are delish.)

And I think that's everyone!!!

Thank you to everyone who reads!!

SUPER special thanks to those who continue to review!!!

Thanks for 451 hits and 152 visitors this month!!!

I don't own Naruto!!!!!

Let me know of any spelling errors or any errors in general that I made so I can fix!!!

* * *

**Chapter 12: Impossible**

It was dark when she opened her eyes, blinking them slowly. There was a small light over her, dull enough to almost be a nightlight. Had she finally fallen asleep? She looked around at the shapes that always occupied her room, watching as their hands glided up and down her body. She shifted, groaning as the world spun.

"So you're awake," She startled slightly, looking up to see a female doctor hovering over her, pressing her hand against Ino's forehead. "My name is Tomoki. Would you like something?" She asked softly, gently touching her cheek. Ino nodded slowly, raising her own hand to her throat. "W-water, maybe?" She almost choked, pressing her hand over her throat to lessen the pain. The doctor nodded, smiling sweetly before disappearing.

Ino sighed slowly, letting her hand slide down to rest on her shoulder. How long had she been here? A few days? Weeks? Months? The days seemed to go on forever, the nights even longer. She had tried counting a few times, but had lost track. She looked up to see the doctor returning, a large glass in her delicate hands. She smiled in thanks, then began to sit up, or tried to. She gasped, holding herself tightly. She felt Tomoki's warm hand gently push her back down on the bed.

"Are you still in pain?" She asked softly, reaching under her and holding her up while the other medics placed pillows under her back, propping her up. Ino avoided her gaze, looking down at her hands. "Well… I guess I feel a bit better now…" She told her; drinking the water she was handed. How nice it felt as it went down her dry throat. The doctor frowned, sighing. "You didn't answer my question." She said softly, but not accusing. Ino finished the water, looking back up to the doctor. Ino could tell that she knew, just by staring into her eyes. She could see it. She sighed in defeat, nodding her head slowly.

The doctor smiled sadly at the girl before her. "Very well. We'll wait a bit longer." Ino frowned at this.

"Wait for what?" She asked, her eyebrows scrunched together.

The doctor seemed hesitant to answer, but did anyways, carefully choosing her words. "I wanted to test your jutsu's."

"Why?"

She was silent for a while, placing her hand on Ino's. "I… I believe that your illness is affecting your abilities. But, I'm not exactly sure how, yet."

Ino stared, mouth open slightly. "Affecting my abilities? How? It's not… It's not d-destroying them… is it?" Ino asked, struggling to keep her voice under control.

"I'm not sure. I'll find out when we do the tests."

"Well let's do the tests, then." Ino declared, raising her hands. The doctor placed her hands over Ino's, shaking her head.

"We can't do that now. It will be too straining on your body." Ino glared, tearing her hands away. "I don't care! I want my jutsu's to be okay!" She growled, centering her window around a medic across the room.

"Yamanaka-San! Don't!" The doctor cried, reaching for her hands again.

"Ninpou, Shintenshin no Jutsu!" Ino cried, her hands slowly falling as her body went limp. Tomoki frantically began checking her vitals when she felt a restraining hand close around her wrist.

"I'm fine, Tomoki. You worry too much." She looked over to see one of her medics pulling her hand away from Ino.

"Yamanaka-San..?" She questioned, watching her nod. "H-how do you feel? Anything different?" The medic sighed.

"Kind of. It almost feels… easier. And the take over went rather quickly." She explained, moving a hand to her shoulder. "However… I still feel the pain from my actual body. It is dulled a lot, so that's good I guess, but I can still feel the burning… My lungs are still aching."

"Return to your body now." The doctor ordered softly, placing a hand under her elbow as Ino raised her hands into her cancelation seal.

"Release!" The medic almost dropped to the ground, her eyes wide, staring at the floor. Tomoki steadied her, explaining quietly in her ear what happened. "Relax, Yuki… Yuki?" She followed her gaze to Ino, her hands forming another shape. Her index fingers touched the opposite thumbs, forming a box in front of her heart.

"Ino, enough! You'll strain yourself too much!"

"I'm fine!" Ino snapped, remaining focused on the medic again. "My apologies. Ninpou, Shinranshin no Jutsu!" Ino smirked, watching the medic stand up straight, placing her hands on the doctor's shoulders. "Tomoki-San, I'm fine. This one works well too." Ino said softly, still holding her seal as the medic turned away from the doctor, her eyes wide with confusion as she sat down in her chair. Ino released the jutsu. The doctor glared at her, sighing.

"You really are too stubborn for your own good." She muttered, closing her eyes and holding her head.

"Tomoki-Sama…" One of the medics looked up from Ino's body, the green glow fading. She looked up. "What's the problem?" She demanded, going closer to where the medic stood, looking around him.

"I don't think it's exactly a problem… But we can't find more of the poison in her system all of a sudden."

"There is no way that it would suddenly just not be there!" Tomoki jumped in, running her hands over Ino's body, up and down several times. Her eyes widened, checking over and over again. "Yamanaka-San…" She started, her hands still hovering. "It appears we were successful in removing the poison." She said it slowly, almost like she had a hard time believing it herself. The medics backed away, wiping their brow as they went to the other side of the room.

Ino smiled at the doctor, feeling hope pulse through her. Her smile quickly faded, however, when she felt something else; something wrong. The burning sensation had intensified, her lungs seemed to shrink. She reached out, grabbing the doctor's wrist tightly, yanking on it. Opening her eyes, she looked down to see Ino's hand around her, then looked up to her face.

"Y-Yamanaka-San, are you alright?" She asked quickly, snapping her fingers behind her to signal for the medics, her eyes not leaving Ino's face. Her eyes were wide, her mouth open, struggling to pull in air as her lips moved, mouthing three words over and over again, her eyes looking up to bore into hers. She blinked her eyes a few times, feeling her head grow light.

It all happened so quickly then, everyone in the room was rushing around. Everyone seemed to be talking at once, each yelling something. She could barely keep up with all of them

"She can't breathe!"

"Her heart is beating too slowly!"

"Why is this happening? Isn't all the poison removed?"

"Shit, how the hell did all that liquid get into her lungs?"

"Call for the emergency techs!"

"Damn it, we're losing her!"

i_I-I'm… I'm dying… now? But I… I'm not… done… Am I?_' Her world went blurry, the whole room spinning until it left her in darkness.

* * * * *

"K-Kankuro?"

"Yeah?" He looked away from the window, his eyes moving to his sister. She didn't speak for a moment, staring sadly at her brother.

"I-I… I'm scared." Temari admitted quietly, wringing her hands. Kankuro sighed, walking over to his sister, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"I know… I… I am too. He's come so far from what he used to be… Now…" He glanced towards the door, his eyebrows pushed together. "With the news about Ino… I have a feeling that… That he…" He sighed, patting his sister gently.

"I don't want him to change back." Temari whispered, biting her lip as the images flashed behind her eyes.

"There isn't much we can do now. We have to wait until he reads the letter from the hospital… And judge by his reaction…" Kankuro explained, feeling his heart rate pick up as well. If Gaara returned to his former state… He swallowed, clenching his teeth together.

They both jumped at a heart-stopping scream from the other side of the building, loud crashes and bangs coming from a certain room. Temari's eyes went wide; hear heart thudding in her chest as she looked over at Kankuro, his eyes narrowed as he tried to keep his breathing under control. They both could hear the crunching of wood as his sand crushed it, throwing anything and everything within reach against the wall.

Temari felt herself begin to shake. "G-Gaara…" They both flinched at another agony twisted shriek. Kankuro pulled his sister to the door and out of the room, dragging her out of the building, away from his screams. He could see the effect it had on her; he could see it in the expression on her face. She had told him many times that he has a chance at becoming a normal person, and that she has hope for him.

But now… There was no hope in her eyes. Only the fear and sorrow of Gaara's former self played across her features. He pulled her into an apartment building, yanking her up the stairs and to a room. It was deafeningly quiet in the apartment room as he sat his trembling sister on the bed. But now she was away from it so she could compose herself. For them both to prepare for the old Gaara to return.

* * * *

Impossible.

Absolutely impossible.

This couldn't have happened.

Not to her, not right now, not ever.

She was too strong for this to happen.

And yet, no matter how he denies, it happened.

And it hurts him, hurts him right down to his very soul.

Sabaku no Gaara was denying the words that echoed in his head.

He stood alone in the hospital room, staring down at Ino lying motionless on the hospital bed.

He could barely stand it, seeing her like this.

No, he couldn't stand it at all, not one bit.

He was glad they had let him see her alone.

But of course, no one said no to him anyways.

He was the one with the murderous past, the one who had killed just to feel alive.

A monster in their eyes.

Yet this monster, the seemingly coldest and cruelest of them all, was fighting something with all he had.

Fighting something he never thought he would need to fight.

The emptiness building up inside, the agony of the sight before him.

Something impossible was happening.

Gaara of the Sand was fighting tears.


End file.
